Don’t let them destroy the revolution

Paul Woodward11/21/2011

An anonymous #OWS activist urges President Obama to break his silence on the bloodshed in Cairo where 24 people have already been killed. But let’s not forget that this is a man who in 2006 supported the carpet-bombing of Beirut, in 2008 remained mute while Israelis slaughtered Palestinians in Gaza, and in 2009 was slow to condemn the Iranian government as it crushed the Green Revolution. Obama is consistent in this respect: he displays an unswerving loyalty to power.

President Obama, where are you? Are you not watching the same images that the world is watching of the massacres in Tahrir? Are you too busy preparing for Thanksgiving to take a minute to make a strong statement about what’s happening in a country in which your government has invested so much money and support?

Are you not outraged at the brutal suppression of pro-democracy protesters by the military junta in Egypt? If so, why have you offered no meaningful condemnation of the attempt to crush a revolution that has so inspired millions of Americans? After all, their encouragement to Occupy Wall Street might actually wind up saving your presidency.

During the fateful 18 days in January and February when Egyptians took to the streets by the millions to topple Hosni Mubarak, you remained largely silent, refusing to call directly for democracy until it was clear that young Egyptians would not be denied their wish to be free of his three-decade-long rule.

In the months since then, as thousands of Egyptians have been attacked, imprisoned, sexually assaulted and murdered by their government, the United States has not merely remained silent, but has continued to provide crucial diplomatic, economic and military aid to the regime responsible for these crimes.

Now that the facade of a democratic transition has been ripped away and Egyptians are once again battling the military government in Tahrir Square for the future of the country, your administration remains as quiet as it was in the early days of the revolution. Such silence is both morally indefensible, and politically and strategically disastrous for the US. The march for freedom in Egypt cannot be stopped, and when Egyptians finally rid themselves of the military government and establish a democratic system, the US will have few friends in Egypt, or the Arab world more broadly, if it is seen as having supported the military rather than the people at this pivotal moment.

The tear gas being fired at demonstrators in Cairo is manufactured by the US company, Combined Systems.

Comments

Where are you “O”? He’s out to lunch with the big donors who may give to his reelection kitty, looking the other way, unless they withhold those wanted $$$$. He still hasn’t learned that he really isn’t one of them, just the 1st, and probably the last.

Probably the main reason Obama is silent is because the US and Israel are behind the attempts of the Egyptian military to steer the election results toward keeping the resulting power in their hands. Note how all the western media call the latest protestors Islamists (a code word for ‘disguised al Qaeda’ ) and misled dupes who are threatening the elections. Not a single balanced analysis of the methods the military are using to turn the process into a rubber stamp for their continued power. An election held too soon is a dead givaway for a rigged election…and after the long revolutionary process of the Arab Spring, Egypt needs a stronger civilian power structure before the fabric of the future state is set.

RE: “The tear gas being fired at demonstrators in Cairo is manufactured by the US company, Combined Systems.”

MONDOWEISS, 11/21/11:

(excerpts)…Egyptian forces have used U.S.-made teargas against peaceful protesters–CSI gas, made by Combined Systems Inc., in the U.S…
…Adalah-NY documented Israel’s use of CSI gas in Palestine against peaceful protesters, specifically in Bil’in, with lethal consequences. And it showed that CSI’s HQ in Jamestown, PA flies an Israeli flag. Adalah also connected its use in Palestine to Egypt and Tunisia…

Books from Amazon

Naomi Klein

Private armies and what they mean for world order

Warlords, Oligarchs, Corporations, Smugglers, and the Theft of Africa's Wealth

Support this site

Click on one of the books appearing above and a small referral will be paid to this site for ANYTHING you buy at Amazon at that time -- with no additional cost to you and even if you don't purchase any of the books displayed here.

Please consider supporting War in Context by making a recurring donation -- select one of the rates from the pulldown form below -- or offering a one-time donation today. Thank you!

News, analysis and opinion with occasional editorials by Paul Woodward.